Revisionist Future: Envisioning Better

The ahha exhibition “Revisionist Future” vividly imagines another future for Tulsa, one of beckoning promises that bank on a transformed present. Even as the paintings envision futurity, they point to the current moment. 

Featured artists Antonio Andrews (of No Parking Studios) and Alexander Tamahn are two rising stars in the Tulsa art scene with very different styles. 

Tamahn’s works like “Land We Own,” “Love Ourselves Harder,” “I Affirmed”, and “Bet on Black” exemplify his radiant optimism. His portraits convey a wide range of emotion in simple, but exacting, colorful strokes. From a toothy grin, to pursed lips, to searching eyes, these sparse works make use of the wood’s grain and texture. The brilliant subtlety of Tamahn’s work is complimented by the frantic layering in Andrew’s. 

Three of Tamahn's Works

In Andrews’ paintings “eiu Tribal Territory” and “Community Garden,” each brush acts as a cartographer’s pen, mapping vibrant roads and rivers on canvas. Meanwhile, pieces like “OkNo1” and “First Name Verse” allude to Tulsa’s community arts scene. In the former, radio towers take up much of the upper right canvas, while DJ No Name stares out from the upper left—both in reference to Tulsa’s own pirate radio, OkNo1. The latter features rapper 1st Verse, his face popping out behind blocks of blue, orange, red, and yellow. 

One of Andrews' Works

2021 is the centennial year of the Tulsa Race Massacre. While many events urge us to look back to face and interrogate Tulsa’s past, this exhibition instead looks at where we are and where we can go, finding a future imbued with possibility. 

The exhibit opened at ahha Tulsa on March 5th and will stay up until April 24th 2021. You can purchase your tickets in advance at the ahha website.